Volvo Comes to Newport

The 2014-15 Volvo Ocean Race is fast taking shape, with a U.S. stopover set to take place in Newport, Rhode Island, in May 2015. The Swedish city of Gothenburg has also been selected to host the finish and final in-port race.

In January, it looked like Baltimore—which has hosted three Volvo stopovers, most recently in 2005-06—would be doing a repeat. However, conflicts with the Preakness Stakes horse race, which is scheduled to take place around the same time, knocked the city out of the running. As part of its deal, Newport will be building a $3 million sailing facility to stage the event.

Meanwhile, out on the water, the all-women SCA team has been holding trials aboard a repurposed Volvo 70 as it sets about selecting a crew. As a first step, a number of candidates, including British solo sailor Sam Davies, sailed the boat down from Southampton, England, to the team’s training camp in Lanzarote in Spain’s Canary Islands. The only other team to have officially thrown its hat into the ring at press time was one from the Brazilian state of Pernambuco, whose capital city of Recife will be the first stopover in the 2014-15 race.

For the latest on the 13th running of the Volvo Ocean Race, including the route, teams and new Volvo 60 one-design boats that the crew will be competing aboard, visit volvooceanrace.com.

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